Rep. Issa: Benghazi on September 11th “was not an accident”

Erika JohnsenPosted at 5:01 pm on December 29, 2013

House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa had already been scheduled for Meet the Press on Sunday, presumably to discuss once again the many lies and letdowns of ObamaCare, but the New York Times‘ release of their story concerning the role the much-debated video actually played in spurring the attack in Benghazi over a year ago quickly changed the discussion plans. Chairman Issa has been a major leader in the GOP’s investigation of what really went on in both Benghazi and among the senior levels of the administration in the aftermath, and while he didn’t full-on disparage the NYT’s reporting, he largely stuck to what Republicans have been insisting all along: The underlying point of their investigation has been to figure out why the Americans in Benghazi were not given the security they asked for well before the attack even started, and why there were no clear attempts to help them throughout — questions that the NYT’s story still doesn’t answer.

Al Qaeda is not decimated, and there was a group there that was involved that is linked to al Qaeda. … What I have claimed, and rightfully so, is Ambassador Stevens and others alerted well in advance that they had a security threat… On the day he was killed, he said it was a question of when, not if, there would be an attack. So, we had warning beforehand, and instead of increasing security, reduced security. During the attack, eight a half hours, we didn’t launch so much as one F-16. There’s a lot of questions about, not what the military capability is today, which has been improved, but what the military capability and response… And then lastly, there was this clear attempt, and Andrea said it very well, there was an attempt to put a bright spot — and maybe it was to cover up CIA activities — but they went out on five stations and told the story that was, at best, a coverup for CIA, and at worst, something that cast away this idea that there was a real terrorist operation in Benghazi.